France’s Macron calls for world order ‘based on law’ in Vietnam

France’s Macron calls for world order ‘based on law’ in Vietnam
French President Emmanuel Macron at a luncheon with Vietnam's Communist Party General To Lam in Hanoi, Vietnam. (Reuters)
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Updated 26 May 2025
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France’s Macron calls for world order ‘based on law’ in Vietnam

France’s Macron calls for world order ‘based on law’ in Vietnam
  • French President Emmanuel Macron says a rules based order is necessary at a “time of both great imbalance and return to power driven rhetoric and intimidation during his Southeast Asia tour
  • Multiple agreements have been signed between France and Vietnam in the field of nuclear power

HANOI: France’s Emmanuel Macron called in Vietnam on Monday for the preservation of a world order “based on law,” as he started a tour of Southeast Asia, a region caught up in the confrontation between the United States and China.
During a press statement alongside his Vietnamese counterpart Luong Cuong in Hanoi, Macron said a rules-based order was necessary at “a time of both great imbalance and a return to power-driven rhetoric and intimidation.”
The president presented France as a reliable alternative for Vietnam, caught between Washington, which is threatening to impose enormous levies on its exports to the United States, and Beijing, an important trade partner with which it is also embroiled in territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
After his arrival in Hanoi late Sunday, the first stop of a six-day trip that will take in Indonesia and Singapore, Macron emphasized a shared vision with Vietnam, a country of 100 million people experiencing stellar growth.
On Monday, around a dozen agreements were signed between the two countries, including in the field of nuclear power, which Hanoi is keen to develop as it seeks to meet soaring energy demands.
Budget airline Vietjet also announced an order for 20 widebody Airbus A330-900 planes, doubling its purchases of the model from the aviation giant in a deal worth an estimated $8 billion.
“It is truly a new page being written between our two countries... a desire to write an even more ambitious page of the relationship between Vietnam and France, between ASEAN and the European Union,” Macron said.
After paying tribute at a Hanoi war memorial to those who fought against French colonial occupation, Macron met his counterpart Cuong.
The president later had lunch with Communist Party General Secretary To Lam at the capital’s star attraction, the Temple of Literature.
Lam is considered the most powerful leader in Vietnam, a one-party state which tolerates no dissent and moves quickly to suppress any criticism.
Ahead of Macron’s first official visit to the country, Human Rights Watch pressed him to voice concerns about “the Vietnamese government’s worsening rights record.”
Vietnam has more than 170 political prisoners who have been charged and convicted under “draconian laws” that criminalize free expression and peaceful activism for human rights and democracy, HRW said.
A public appeal would be out of character for the French president, who regularly says he prefers to raise sensitive issues behind closed doors.

Macron hopes to sell Hanoi his offer of a “third way” between Washington and Beijing.
“Vietnam is really on the front line of all the tensions that are growing in the South China Sea,” a senior French diplomatic official told AFP.
Hanoi shares Washington’s concerns about Beijing’s increasing assertiveness in the contested waterway, but it has close economic ties with its giant neighbor.
Vietnam has also been threatened with a hefty 46 percent tariff by US President Donald Trump as part of his global trade blitz.
Macron’s “Indo-Pacific strategy” — which proposes a third way to the countries of the region — has gained new relevance due to Trump’s trade war, according to the aide.
He said the president was “defending the idea of international trade rules, we don’t want a jungle where the law of the strongest prevails.”
Vietnam has been careful to follow its own balancing act between China and the United States.
It has adopted a “bamboo diplomacy” approach of seeking strength through flexibility, or looking to stay on good terms with the world’s major powers.
 


Zelensky says Ukraine will send a delegation to Istanbul for talks with Russia on Monday

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Zelensky says Ukraine will send a delegation to Istanbul for talks with Russia on Monday

Zelensky says Ukraine will send a delegation to Istanbul for talks with Russia on Monday
KYIV: Ukraine will send a delegation to Istanbul for a new round of direct peace talks with Russia on Monday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, even as Russia pounded Ukraine with a missile strike that killed 12 soldiers and the biggest drone assault of the three-year war.
In a statement on Telegram, Zelensky said Sunday that Defense Minister Rustem Umerov will lead the Ukrainian delegation. “We are doing everything to protect our independence, our state and our people,” Zelensky said.
Ukrainian officials had previously called on the Kremlin to provide a promised memorandum setting out its position on ending the war before the meeting takes place. Moscow had said it would share its memorandum during the talks.
Russian strike hits an army unit
Russia launched the biggest number of drones on Ukraine since the full-scale invasion three years ago, Ukraine’s air force said Sunday. The air force said 472 drones were launched over Ukraine.
Russian forces also launched seven missiles alongside the barrage of drones, said Yuriy Ignat, head of communications for the Ukrainian air force. Earlier Sunday, Ukraine’s army said at least 12 Ukrainian service members were killed and more than 60 were injured in a Russian missile strike on an army training unit.
The strike occurred at 12:50 p.m. (0950 GMT), the statement said, emphasizing that no formations or mass gatherings of personnel were being held at the time. An investigative commission was created to uncover the circumstances around the attack that led to such a loss in personnel, the statement said.
The training unit is located to the rear of the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) active front line, where Russian reconnaissance and strike drones are able to strike.
Ukraine’s forces suffer from manpower shortages and take extra precautions to avoid mass gatherings as the skies across the front line are saturated with Russian drones looking for targets.
“If it is established that the actions or inaction of officials led to the death or injury of servicemen, those responsible will be held strictly accountable,” the Ukrainian Ground Forces’ statement said.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian drone strikes were reported deep in Russian territory Sunday, including in the Siberian region of Irkutsk, more than 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) east of Moscow.
It is the first time that a Ukrainian drone has been seen in the region, local Gov. Igor Kobzeva said, stressing that it did not present a threat to civilians.
Other drone strikes were also reported in Russia’s Ryazan region and the Arctic Murmansk region. No casualties were reported.
Northern pressure
Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Sunday that it had taken control of the village of Oleksiivka in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region. Ukrainian authorities in Sumy ordered mandatory evacuations in 11 more settlements Saturday as Russian forces make steady gains in the area.
Speaking Saturday, Ukraine’s top army chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said that Russian forces were focusing their main offensive efforts on Pokrovsk, Toretsk and Lyman in the Donetsk region, as well as the Sumy border area.

Ukraine stages major attack on Russian aircraft with drones, security official says

Ukraine stages major attack on Russian aircraft with drones, security official says
Updated 24 min 3 sec ago
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Ukraine stages major attack on Russian aircraft with drones, security official says

Ukraine stages major attack on Russian aircraft with drones, security official says

KYIV: Ukraine conducted a large drone attack on Russian military aircraft on Sunday, a security official told Reuters, saying 40 Russian warplanes were struck.
If confirmed, the strikes would be the most damaging Ukrainian drone attack of the war, and would be a significant setback for Moscow.
The official said that the strikes were conducted by the SBU domestic intelligence agency, and that they had simultaneously hit four Russian military air bases on Sunday.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said more than 40 aircraft were hit, including Tu-95 and Tu-22 strategic bombers, which Russia uses to fire long-range missiles at Ukraine.
Reuters could not immediately verify the assertions.
The source shared video footage, saying it showed the strikes. The images showed several large aircraft, some of which appeared to be Tu-95 strategic bombers, on fire.
Ukraine, which lacks Russia’s vast arsenal of missiles, has instead built up a large fleet of attack drones which it has used to attack Russian military and oil facilities.
Russia had proposed a fresh round of talks in Istanbul on Monday, but Kyiv has thus far neither confirmed nor denied that it will be attending.


Russian strike kills 12 Ukrainian soldiers during training: Kyiv

Russian strike kills 12 Ukrainian soldiers during training: Kyiv
Updated 01 June 2025
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Russian strike kills 12 Ukrainian soldiers during training: Kyiv

Russian strike kills 12 Ukrainian soldiers during training: Kyiv
  • Kyiv did not say where the strike took place, but stressed the soldiers were not taking part in a “mass gathering” and most were in their shelters during the attack

KYIV: A Russian missile strike on a Ukrainian army training area killed at least 12 soldiers and wounded dozens more Sunday, Kyiv said, in a rare admission of its military losses.
Kyiv did not say where the strike took place, but stressed the soldiers were not taking part in a “mass gathering” and most were in their shelters during the attack.
The Ukrainian army has in recent weeks faced pressure to investigate what some see as glaring lapses in ensuring the safety of training soldiers.
Six soldiers training close to the border were killed by a Russian strike last month, in what one Ukrainian opposition politician called a “crime” by army leadership.
“Today, on June 1, the enemy launched a missile strike on the location of one of the training units of the Ukrainian army,” the Ukrainian army said in a statement.
“As of 12:50 p.m. (0950 GMT), 12 people are known to have been killed and more than 60 wounded.”
“If it is established that the deaths and injuries of the servicemen were caused by the actions or inaction of officials, those responsible will be brought to strict accountability,” it added.
Separately on Sunday, the Russian army said it had captured another village in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region, where Kyiv fears Moscow could mount a fresh ground assault.
Russia claims to have captured several settlements in the region in recent weeks, and has massed more than 50,000 soldiers on the other side of the border, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Authorities in the region have evacuated more than 200 villages amid intensified shelling.


China’s Yunnan hit with floods, mudslides from intense rains

China’s Yunnan hit with floods, mudslides from intense rains
Updated 01 June 2025
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China’s Yunnan hit with floods, mudslides from intense rains

China’s Yunnan hit with floods, mudslides from intense rains
  • Over 600 tourists visiting rural scenic spots in the area on Saturday found themselves trapped, according to Xinhua, which reported 500 of them had been rescued by Sunday

BEIJING: Heavy rainfall triggering flash floods and mudslides have damaged roads, destroyed buildings and claimed bridges, wreaking havoc in China’s southwestern Yunnan province on a long holiday weekend.
No casualties were reported but more than 4,800 residents in Gongshan county were affected, with about one-third of them urgently relocated, state news agency Xinhua said.
Over 600 tourists visiting rural scenic spots in the area on Saturday found themselves trapped, according to Xinhua, which reported 500 of them had been rescued by Sunday.
Road access to mountainous sites popular with hikers such as Bingzhongluo town and Yubeng village in neighboring Deqin county were cut off, state broadcaster CCTV.
The Dulong river saw flood waters swell to record levels, according to historical logs from a hydrological monitoring station.
A four-story building set along the river that had been evacuated collapsed, CCTV reported, showing a video of the structure tipping backwards and disappearing into a cloud of dust.
The intense rainfall over a 12-hour period disrupted power supplies. Repair work to roads and power lines was underway, said state media.
Local authorities had issued a red alert ahead of the rainstorm on Friday night but downgraded it to a yellow alert by Saturday morning.
China uses a four-color warning system that escalates from blue, yellow, orange to red according to the level of precipitation and anticipated risks.


India sees tenfold rise in COVID-19 cases

India sees tenfold rise in COVID-19 cases
Updated 01 June 2025
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India sees tenfold rise in COVID-19 cases

India sees tenfold rise in COVID-19 cases
  • India’s official caseload increased to 3,395 on Sunday from 257 on May 22
  • No spike in hospitalization rate, pulmonologist says, as symptoms remain mild

NEW DELHI: India has reported a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases over the past 10 days, official data showed on Sunday, with new, more transmissible virus variants believed to be driving the surge.

A new wave of infections emerged in parts of Asia last month, especially Hong Kong, Singapore, China and Thailand.

The new spread of the coronavirus that a few years ago brought the world to a standstill has been linked to JN.1, a highly transmissible variant of the omicron strain of COVID-19. It emerged in late 2023 and spread globally through early 2024, becoming one of the dominant variants in many countries.

India’s current caseload is 3,395 as of Sunday, according to Ministry of Health data – up significantly from the previous official count of 257 on May 22.

The ministry confirmed last week it had detected across the country two subvariants of JN.1 – LF.7 and NB.1.8.1 – which spread faster but are believed to be mild.

“(The) majority of those are mild cases, just like seasonal flu, and we are not seeing any significant admission or emergency visits due to COVID-19. Right now, the situation is under control. Any flu that starts spreading spreads fast like wildfire,” Dr. Nikhil Modi, pulmonology and respiratory medicine specialist at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital in New Delhi, told Arab News.

While in the last 24 hours, four deaths have been recorded – in Delhi, Kerala, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh – the “patients were already suffering from critical illnesses,” Modi said.

“Severe disease is not being reported anywhere significantly.”

India was one of the worst-hit countries during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. At its peak, health authorities recorded over 400,000 new cases per day.

Hospitals across many states were overwhelmed with patients and faced severe shortages of oxygen supplies, hospital beds, ventilators, and critical medicines.

The World Health Organization estimates that 4.7 million deaths in India were directly and indirectly related to COVID-19.

“The way we have seen COVID-19 in 2021, panic is bound to come but things, for the time being, are under control. We are not seeing admissions significantly rising due to COVID, so we should be able to manage. Advisories and preparedness in all hospitals have started, so if the situation changes, we are ready for it,” Modi said.

“Right now, we don’t have to panic about it.”